The Wild Robot Review: Magic Android Adventure

In the utterly enchanting The Wild Robot, DreamWorks shows it still has the magic touch for heartfelt, original storytelling.

Lupita Nyong’o leads a voice cast replete with household names, including Bill Nighy, Pedro Pascal and Catherine O’Hara. She plays the titular robot, named ROZZUM 7134 or Roz for short, who finds herself stranded on an island uninhabited by the humans she was built to serve. Programmed only to follow orders and complete tasks in a future Earth society, Roz sets about trying to assist as best she can the dwellers of her new home, all of them woodland animals. After a baptism of fire in the chaos of nature, Roz stumbles across a newly hatched gosling, later christened Brightbill (Kit Connor, of Heartstopper), whose preparation for the next migration season becomes her latest task to complete.

Adapted from Peter Brown’s series of books by Chris Sanders (How to Train Your Dragon), the film’s premise is utterly enchanting and things only improve from there. In its first ten minutes The Wild Robot provokes more laughter from its audience than most adult comedies, packing in a series of dark and witty observations on the circle of life and the brutality of the natural world that will strike a chord with kids and grown-ups alike. 

While Roz just wants to help make life as simple and convenient as possible for her new neighbours, the majority of the animals fear her, her miscommunications and their misconceptions the cornerstone of much of the film’s humour. Most memorably, an opossum matriarch (O’Hara) teaches her offspring how to play dead, but they’re more interested in the choosing of their fictional causes of death: ‘meningitis!’ ‘sepsis!’ they shout with glee.

As Roz raises Brightbill, the runt of his brood, she ingratiates herself to the crafty fox Fink (Pascal), Paddler the beaver (an instantly recognisable Matt Berry) and Nighy’s wise old goose Longneck. Though tasked with the education and development of her young avian prodigy, over time we see the robot herself develop emotions and desires beyond her pre-programmed settings, her newfound joie de vivre endearingly recalling the lunar android of Wallace and Gromit classic A Grand Day Out. As the film uncovers its heart, the gags relent a little and a gorgeous expression of individualism and the rejection of determinism comes into flower.

The film’s plot develops with an unexpected sophistication, its climax not quite arriving when one would expect. Brightbill’s arc may be a familiar one about self-belief and acceptance of difference, but Roz’s, which fully blossoms later, will blow families away with its unapologetic championing of individual expression and carving out one’s own path. Both explore the fundamental conflict between what we are told we must do, be it through computer programming or animal instinct, and what our hearts want.

This is all realised with a gorgeous animation style. The watercolour-like fur of the forest animals is dazzling, while Roz’s transformation from glossy technological device to a bashed up machine covered in moss and dirt is a lovely visualisation of her internal metamorphosis. That’s not to mention the landscapes, whose pastoral splendidness displays the influence of Sanders’ beloved Miyazaki creations.

Rammed with laughter, action and profound empathy, The Wild Robot has all the makings of a modern children’s favourite. Success at the box office may well transform this special little film into the kind of multibillion-dollar franchise for which DreamWorks has become known, but for now let’s just savour the moment. An animated film with this much character and inventiveness is a rare thing.

The Wild Robot was screened at TIFF on September 8, 2024 and will be released in US & Canadian theaters on September 27, 2024. In the UK, the film will premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on October 13 and then open in UK & Irish cinemas on October 18, 2024.